Nightmares into Dreams
by AnAngelsWriter15
Summary: Skylar's dealing with some memories, not very good ones either. They haunt her every moment of the day. But what happens when a tough, stone faced, handsome player swoops in and tries to save the day? Leverage's Eliot Spencer and an OC :) I don't own Leverage's characters! This is for wingedstallion: Thanks so much for reading and following my story :)


_**(For wingedstallion: Thanks so much for following my Leverage story!)**_

She sat there, out on the balcony, her amber eyes closed and her ears listening. Distantly, she could almost hear the sound of a bullet tearing a man's flesh open. She could hear the silence that rang through her ears even though she had screamed her heart out. Her eyes opened slowly. A bead of sweat was building up on her forehead but she quickly wiped it.

"Read, Skyler? We're about to start the movie!" Sophie called from inside the apartment.

"Almost." Skyler Duke answered quietly, taking long deep breaths like her psychiatrist had once told her to do. She hated saying so but Dr. Hanson was right. It did help all the bad thoughts to go away.

Skyler slowly got up, walking towards the group. They were used to her blanking out but it was all right. She was from the army, and they all knew about her PTSD. The problem was getting her to talk about it. The saying goes that if you talk about it, you'll feel better. With Skylar, you have to get her to talk about it. And no one's been able to do that yet.

Parker patted the spot beside her on the couch and Skylar sat down with a small smile. They were all so understanding…so sweet…

"Alright. We've got a romance movie, a comedy, an action movie, a horror movie, a fantasy movie, and Star Wars." Hardison grinned at the last one, showing everyone the movies they had all picked out.

"I say we watch the horror movie." Parker smiled brightly. Skylar glanced at the title: _The Woman in Black._

"Parker, we watched that last time." Eliot grumbled from beside Skylar.

"So? It's the best!" Parker insisted and earned herself a pillow to the face. "Hey! Nate! Eliot's throwing pillows at me!" She whined, pouting childishly.

"Eliot, stop throwing pillows. Parker, pick a better movie next time." Nate said with a wave of his free hand, his other arm around Sophie's waist.

"I think we should watch the romance movie." Sophie exclaimed, smiling at the group. "It's the _Princess Bride_! Hello! Classic!" She sighed as the team looked at her blankly, obviously never having seen it.

"Well maybe it's a good time to laugh." Nate said, glancing over at Skylar's blank face. "That's why we're watching the comedy." He slid the disk into the DVD player and leaned back into the couch.

Skylar hugged her legs to her chest, trying to concentrate on the movie. But her mind had other ideas…

_She stood there, sniper up and waiting. The wind was light, the sun was going down and everyone was quiet. Skylar looked at her partner. Eddie. She had never asked for his last name. Didn't want to make personal connections. But she already had a personal connection with him whether she wanted it or not. Eddie made sure he had personal connections with everyone. He loved life and there was never a day he didn't talk about his family. He had two daughters and a wife back home. Loved them dearly, he said. Skylar had forced herself not to cry when she had to tell his family the news…_

_Gunshots sounded in her thoughts, the sound of him yelling for her attention…_

"Helllooooooooo." A voice rang, interrupting her thoughts.

"Um…what?" Skylar looked up to her side to see Parker staring at her.

"I asked if you wanted any popcorn." Parker grinned happily, munching on the popcorn.

"I'm fine." She answered, leaning her head back. She closed her eyes and the sound of Eddie's last words thundered in the back of her mind. _Tell my family I love them…_ He had looked her deep in the eyes, his voice was breaking, Skylar's heart started to race thinking back.

She grabbed what ever was closest to her side, gripping it tightly as she started to have a panic attack.

"Shh…" A voice whispered to her. "Calm down your breathing. Focus on the sound of my voice." It instructed.

Skylar slowed down her breathing, forcing her body to listen to her mind. She slowly opens her eyes and looks at her hand, noticing that she's gripping Eliot's arm.

"Sorry. Bad dream." She came up with quietly. She stood up slowly, avoiding his eyes, which were watching her like a hawk. "I'm going to get some rest." She told the team, heading out to the balcony.

The team had already learned that when Skylar needed alone time, there was no use on trying to get her to open up. But something was different about this time.

Eliot got up without a word to his teammates and followed her out. He closed the door behind him and leaned against it, watching her sit down and close her eyes again.

"I know a panic attack when I see one." He said gruffly to her, folding his arms.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She murmured, still trying to focus her mind on something other than her flashbacks.

"I was in the army too." He told her, sitting beside her. "I know what it's like to go through PTSD."

"I'm not going through anything." She grumbled through clenched teeth.

"I'm trying to help you." He growled at her, hoping she'd look at him.

Eyes still closed, Skylar huffed softly. "I don't need help." She shot back.

"Denial won't help you. Trust me, I know." He whispered softly to her. Skylar looked up after a bit, hearing his tone change.

"It's not that I killed someone…of course it's very traumatic…but…" She looked down, biting her lip hard. "My mistake cost a good man his life. And I made myself tell the family. I visit them every year to make sure they're well off…" She sighed, brushing her long brown hair out of her eyes. "The worst part is…they're incredibly nice to me. They _know_ it was my fault but insists that isn't…they're so sweet." She whispered as her eyes started to fog with tears. She shook her head, forcing herself to stop.

Eliot slipped his arm around her waist, giving her a somewhat awkward hug. "Whatever happened out there, happened, Skylar." He whispered quietly to her. "Whatever mistake you made is in the past…I've made a lot of mistakes and I've spent a lot of time thinking about them. But what you do is learn from them…don't keep thinking about what could've happened…think about what you can do _now_." He leaned his head against hers, brushing his lips over her forehead.

She listened to him, looking up at Eliot. "Thanks." She said quietly, leaning into his chest. After a moment, she pulled away, standing up. "I'm alright now. Back to the movie?" She said, clearing her throat. He looked at her, almost speechless.

"Uh…sure." He got up, opening the door for her.

Skylar sat down on the couch in her original spot and Eliot went to the kitchen, getting everyone a cup of hot chocolate **(reference to my story ;) wink wink, nudge nudge ;) hahaha)**. He handed Skylar hers, smiling slightly.

"Thank you." She whispered to him, looking up into his blue eyes. "For everything." She added quietly.

He gave her a cheeky little wink and a smile. "I'll always be here if you need me." He whispered to her.

Looking back, Skylar could've never asked for a better person to talk to. In her mind, Eliot had always been that guy to stay clear of. First of all, he was always in bed with a different girl as long as she literally handed him her body. Secondly, he didn't seem very friendly when she first met him.

But now he's been checking on her every night, making sure she hasn't been having nightmares. In fact, she moved in with him in his small apartment. He taught her everyday how to handle her fears until one night; she could close her eyes and sleep peacefully without having to think back on what happened.

Eliot was her hero and no matter what, Skylar couldn't even imagine what would happen if he hadn't followed her out that day. They had grown so close; Skylar was almost finding herself thinking about him in a way more than a friend. Hardison and Parker seemed to notice it too because they would leave Eliot and Skylar alone in a room together whenever they had the chance. But Skylar didn't want to push her chances, she had already gotten such an amazing bond with him, she didn't want to ruin it by becoming all lovey dovey.

Walking along the park, Skylar breathed in the fresh fall air, watching leaves fall everywhere around her. She had been wandering the park for over an hour now, just thinking and letting her mind settle down like Eliot had taught her.

"You have something in your hair." Someone chuckled from behind her.

Swirling around to face him, Skylar giggled, standing still while Eliot plucked a leaf from her hair. "Come to check up on me?" She asked, looking up at him.

He shrugged, mumbling a "Sure" and walking with her along the path.

"I love fall." She whispered, mainly to herself. "It's nice to watch all the leaves change colours."

"Kindof like you." Eliot stated, not looking at her, but rather, watching the leaves above them. "You've changed a lot. For the better, of course." He smiled softly at her, nudging her arm gently.

"Thanks to you that is." She pointed out, sighing happily. "I don't think I could've done it without you."

"Probably not." He grinned cheekily.

"Yep you're my hero." She giggled, reaching up and just giving his cheek a light kiss. Pulling away quickly, she blushed, avoiding his eyes and pretending there was something incredibly interesting to look at up in the trees.

"Hey, Skylar?" Eliot called after a moment. Looking back at him, her neck slightly sore from tilting her head back to look at the skies above them, she immediately felt a pair of soft lips against hers.

Surprised, she felt her body freeze up but then slowly begin to melt into the kiss, kissing back gently.

"I'm glad you're feeling better." He murmured against her lips, pulling away, his voice throaty and deep. He looked into her eyes and she smiled shyly, looking down.

"I hate you." She mumbled, laughing quietly. He stared at her, surprised. "You just made me feel all giddy inside…I haven't felt that way since I was 10!" She giggled, smiling over at him and pecking his lips again. It was true. Skylar wasn't used to feeling…happy or excited. But there was something different about Eliot, he really did care for her, something she never felt as a child.

His surprised expression broke into a grin and he kissed her forehead gently, still sending tingles down her spine.

"I'll always be here if you need me." He murmured.


End file.
